Fates and Bonds: A Manslayer Story
by Legendary-Battousai
Summary: After being taken care of and becoming acquainted with the occupants of the Kamiya Dojo, a familiar person decides to come with a threat to Tim's life. What will become of him now...?
1. Chapter 1

"Shishio!" Kenshin yelled as he stared down his enemy, prepared for the last move that could finish him off for good. "Your plans of destroying this country are about to be stopped here and now! With this sakabato, I swear to uphold my honor of protecting the innocent!!"

With a loud cackle, Shishio readied his mugenjin and smirked. "Still spouting the same ol' words from when you stopped slaying for the revolution...? It's sad to hear you like this, Battousai! Such a fighter should never change like that! If you're really serious about killing me, then throw away that no-killing crap and fight me for real!!"

Kenshin grasped his sword tightly as his eyes suddenly changed into the color of the battousai. "As you wish...Makoto Shishio. This duel shall end with the next attack!!" He suddenly disappeared and reappeared right in front of him, his sword drawn and flipped to where the sharp side would hit him. Shishio saw this and raised his blade to block the oncoming assault...and with a loud clang, they swords echoed loudly in the area.

SERIES PREMIERE

A Manslayer Story

Season 1, Episode 1-Dream or Reality:The Cogs of Fate Begin to Turn! (PG-LV)

With a scream, Tim sat up in his bed and felt sweat pour down his face. He placed his hand to his face and tried to calm his breathing, being really confused and surprised about the dreams he had the night before and just now. They only consisted of the world of Rurouni Kenshin, an anime he enjoyed so much. Yesterday, it was about the battle with Enishi and how Kenshin was fighting to get Kaoru back...and now, it was Kenshin fighting with Shishio. Whether it was his obsession with the anime or some kind of sign to his life...he wasn't sure. He sat on the edge of his bed and stared down at the floor, his eyes looking at the brown carpet. "This merely can't be some dream..." He whispered. "It didn't feel like I was just watching it...but...I was Kenshin..." He held his face again. "I could feel the pain, the pressure of battle..." He looked at his alarm clock and saw it was only 3:00 AM, 5 hours since he went to bed. "Damn...I don't think I'll be able to sleep again tonight."

He stood and made his way out into the hallway to make his way to the bathroom, then head for the kitchen to get a snack. Upon doing so, he heard loud snores coming from the living room. He saw the TV was still on and beer cans surrounding the couch his father was sleeping on. It was only him and his father staying in that place. His mother came by every week to drop off groceries and to spend a little time with him. Tim's only special person in the world was his mother since she was always there for him. His father, along with everyone else, didn't treat him like a human being.

Upon getting cereal, he dropped the box before opening it and saw his father move on the couch. He hoped he wouldn't wake him since his father was always drunk and well...Tim despised his father for what he did afterwards.

"Huh...?!" His father looked around in a daze, then noticed Tim in the kitchen. "What the hell are you doing up?!" He yelled. "You should be in bed...!"

Fear was now overcoming Tim as he stood there, watching his father stand and walk over to him. He couldn't move since running from him only made it worse.

His father stopped right in front of him, then quickly backhanded Tim across the face hard, sending him back against the counter.

Tim let out a scream as he slammed his back hard against it and fell to the ground. He remained sitting there till his father picked him up by the hair, then was punched hard in the face. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he just stood there, letting this horrible thing happen to him. Tim wasn't strong like a lot of people. If anything, he was probably the weakest person in town.

"God damn brat..." He said in a drunken state. "You're pitiful...!" He slammed Tim against the wall, then threw him to the ground. "Get out of my sight, you sorry excuse for a man...NOW!"

Tim got up as fast as he could and tried to walk to his room, pain all over his body. He barely made it up the stairs since his legs were giving out. Upon reaching the last step, he used the wall to support himself and finally arrived back in his room. He closed the door, but didn't bother locking it since his father could easily get in with a lockpick. Collapsing on his bed, Tim broke into sobs and let out scream after scream. "Why?!" He yelled. "Why must I live like this?!"

--

Elsewhere, in the world of Rurouni Kenshin, Misao hummed as she sat on the porch of the Kamiya Dojo, staring up at the evening sky with a smile on her face. "Don't worry, Lord Aoshi. I'll be home soon." Then she turned to see Kaoru walk up beside her. "Oh, Miss Kaoru. Good evening."

Kaoru bowed her head lightly. "Good evening, Miss Misao. How was your bath?"

She smiled. "It felt great. Himura did well with the fire, so it was nice and warm."

"That's good to hear. My policy is to make sure guests and friends are properly taken care of after all."

"Well, you do a good job of that, Miss Kaoru. Himura does the good cooking and you do the training."

Kaoru smirked. "So, you're saying my cooking is awful?"

She laughed. "No, no...it's fine. I'm just saying that's your major use since this is a swordsmanship dojo."

"Yeah, that's true...but no one else other than Yahiko is my student. Yutaro is in Germany again, so I'm only stuck with one. There was that one other one that stayed for a while. His name was Daiguro..." She sat down beside her. "It was shortly after we arrived home after that incident with Shougo and his followers."

"Perhaps you could add me to the list, Miss Kaoru." Misao smiled. "I'm sure I'd be a great addtition to the Kamiya Kasshin Style..." She grinned. "...since it gives me a better reason to kick Yahiko's butt at practice again."

Kaoru giggled lightly. "I wouldn't get good business if you started, Miss Misao. Being a ninja, you'd have an advantage over most of the students...well..." She scratched the back of her head. "Only Yahiko."

Misao stuck her tongue out playfully. "You're just jealous!" She humphed.

Kaoru smiled. "So, how are you and Aoshi doing lately? Is marriage in the picture yet?"

She blushed, then looked out over the dojo yard with a smile. "Well...not quite yet. We've been spending a lot of time together, and well..." She then became embarassed and let out a light squeal.

With a laugh, Kaoru pat her back. "I'm glad to hear things are going well."

Misao smiled, then slowly frowned slightly. "But...there is one thing that's bothering me, and maybe you should hear about it."

Kaoru then became concerned by the sound of her voice. "What is it...?"

Misao looked down slightly and sighed. "It's these dreams I've been having...of Himura, or...I think it's him..."

"Kenshin...? What about him?"

She looked at her as she continued. "I find myself there...standing on the sidelines of his battles. This person looks so much like Kenshin...but there's no cross-shaped scar on his left cheek and his hair is the same color, just not in a ponytail."

"I see..." Kaoru smiled. "But pay them no mind. I'm sure they're nothing."

Misao looked down slightly, then smiled in reassurance. "Yeah, you're right."

--

Back in the present, Tim had fallen asleep later that night and awoke on his bed in pain still. Looking at his alarm clock, he saw it was 7:00 AM. Feeling a little sick, he felt he needed some fresh air and knew his father was probably sleeping in a drunken state. He sat up and stood slowly, making his way to the window and climbed out onto the roof to make his way down to the front yard. Making his way down unnoticed and without making much noise, he walked off towards town to take a quiet walk. As he did, his mind wandered and thought about the dream he just had as he was sleeping back at home.

Instead of being in a battle, he was standing alone in the middle of what seemed like Tokyo during a rainstorm, quiet all around him. Rain dripped off his reddish-orange hair as he stood still, strange noises being heard in the distance. He looked around him, unknowingness shown in his eyes. After a few minutes, he heard footsteps stepping on rain puddles and quickly turned back forward to see the silhouette of what seemed like a girl. He slowly took a few steps forward. "Umm...who's there...?" He asked quietly.

"Himura...?" A familiar voice asked as the person came into view.

With a loud gasp, Tim stepped back slightly. "Mi...!"

That is when the dream ended.

Tim tried to remember who it was that had come into view, but couldn't. He decided to ignore the dream for now and to walk quietly.

Upon reaching the suburb area, he was coming close to a dark alleyway where unaware guys were hanging out. One of them saw Tim approaching and informed the others. With grins on their faces, they grabbed him once he came up by the opening of the alley and threw him down. Tim let out a yelp of surprise and quickly turned, fear on his face as he saw them standing there, bats in their hands. "No..." He whispered. "Please...don't...!"

"Poor little Tim." One walked up to him, a sadistic grin on his face. "It must be awful to realize that no one is going to help you. This is where your life ends."

Tim's body shook as he stared with fear, his hands clenched in fists.

"Get him boys!" Then, the bats started slamming into him, Tim letting out scream after scream. Blood stuck to the bats as wounds were made all over his body. This went on for a few minutes before they stopped and saw that Tim had enough. His body was twitching and blood was on the ground around him.

"Hmph...pitiful worm." Derek, the one who seemed to be the leader, said as he stared at him twitching. "Be grateful we didn't aim for your head. We didn't want to kill you...yet." He smirked and walked off, followed by the others in his gang.

Tim laid there on the ground, silent tears rolling down his face. The pain was to great...the pain of loneliness, the pain of being beaten by both bullies and his dad, the pain of hoping and nothing never happened...

"Kill me...kill me...kill me..." Tim whispered over and over as he drifted into unconciousness. The last thing he realized before blacking out...was the face of a girl in his mind; the one he admired so very much...

--

Misao walked into the kitchen when she could smell food and looked over Kaoru's shoulder as she was cooking dinner. "What's on the menu tonight?"

She looked at her. "I was thinking along with beef stew, I could make something special with the rice. I'm still thinking about it, though."

"Sounds...good." Misao said rather hesitantly.

"You going somewhere with this?" She glared at her, but in a funny way.

With a yip of surprise, Misao sweatdropped and held her hands up in front of her. "Not at all!" She said quickly.

"Good." Kaoru turned back around to continue cooking, then gasped when she realized something. "Oh darn...I don't have any carrots."

"I can go get some, Miss Kaoru." Misao said nicely.

Kaoru turned to her with a smile and nod her head. "Alright. You can go into my room and I should have a few yen sitting on my small cabinet."

"Got it." She ran out onto the porch and to her room, grabbing what Kaoru said would be there and dashed off to the market to get the carrots needed for dinner. It took only a few minutes for her to make her way to where she needed to go since she had her fast ninja speed. Upon getting them, she started to dash back to the dojo. Upon turning the last corner and running the final stretch to the dojo doors, she turned to her left to look in an alleyway. She heard a noise and suddenly got a kunai out, just in case it was someone wanting to hurt her. "Who's there...?" She asked quietly.

Someone came from around the corner very slowly, blood dripping onto the ground from his clothing. His head was down, showing he was really close to collapsing.

Upon seeing the man, Misao's eyes widened and she dropped her kunai to the ground, her body shaking. "Hi...Himura?!"

The man slowly raised his head, showing blood was present on his face. His eyes were hardly open and his breathing seemed heavy.

"Himura!!" Misao dropped the bag of carrots and her kunai as she ran up to him, her arms suddenly catching him when he was just falling over. "Himura...oh god..." Her eyes teared up at his condition. "Who did this to you...?"

The man had already blacked out in her arms, blood getting on Misao's uniform.

"Don't worry, Himura...I'll take care of you." She said with a saddened smile and slowly brought him back to the dojo with her, worry on her face that he might not make it...


	2. Chapter 2

Somewhere in Japan, a shadowy figure stands in the darkness of the woods, the evil of his eyes the only thing being seen. Before him were plenty of men, close to twenty of them, kneeled before him. There was an area for someone to walk in between the two groups.

"Come forth." The shadowy figure spoke.

As he was commanded, a man wearing a black cape, his face hidden, stepped forward and kneeled in the front of the loyal group. "Yes, my lord?"

"Have you confirmed the arrival of the battousai?"

"Yes, my lord." He looked up at him, his face still hidden. "It was earlier tonight. One of your men told me of his arrival after he roughed him up a little. It's a good thing he was a yakuza because they're known for their attacks on the innocent."

"Good." A smirk came over his face. "It's about time things got started...because once 'he' is dead..." He raised his arms up above his head. "...then NO ONE will dare stand in my way again!!"

"YEAH!!" The men cheered.

The caped man smirked. "And I also get to abuse him more..."

Season 1, Chapter 2-The Beginning of a New Life (PG)

"Uhh..." Misao struggled to take one more step before she knocked on the door to the Kamiya Dojo, the weight of the boy to much for her now. She looked up at the sky as it was starting to blacken with the coming of night, knowing there was a storm approaching. It was due to her time spent with the Oniwaban Group during her younger days that she was taught how to predict the weather.

"Coming!" Kaoru's voice could be heard as she walked up to the doors and opened the right one, gasping as she saw Misao and the man she had. Her face started to pale upon looking at him.

"Ke...Kenshin..."

"Come on, Kaoru! He's still alive! We can save him!" Misao exclaimed.

"Right...!" The young woman stood on the other side of Misao and helped her get him inside, laying him gently on the yukata in the spare room. "How could this happen..." She whispered.

"Let's get started, Miss Kaoru..." The young leader placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled. "He needs us."

Kaoru wiped a tear away and nod her head, a small smile appearing on her face. "Yeah." She stood up and quickly walked out to get the supplies.

While gone, Misao looked him over. After a few moments, she gasped as she finally realized something strange about him. When Kaoru came back with the things they needed, Misao spoke up. "Miss Kaoru, look!" She pointed at his left cheek.

Kaoru kneeled beside her and gasped when she realized that there was no cross-shaped scar! "What...? Then...if there's no scar..."

"Then this is someone else looking almost like Himura." Misao looked at her. "I also realized he has no ponytail since his hair isn't as long. I was thinking it was him by the face and the eye color..." The young leader looked back to the man laying before her. "...but I now see this man can't be no older than me."

"Nonetheless, we should hurry and help him." Kaoru placed the medical box down, took rubbing alcohol and bandages out, telling Misao to carefully take the top part of his yukata off.

Misao complied and started on it, blushing as she looked at the quiet face the man had. Upon finishing, Misao took the rubbing alcohol from Kaoru and started placing it on his wounds.

It took them 30 minutes to help him out, then Kaoru wiped her forehead and sighed. "There...that should just about do it."

"We should make some food and tea for him when he wakes up." Misao suggested.

"Good idea." Kaoru stood up and started walking out, then turned back towards Misao. "Did you want to stay here in case he woke up?"

Misao smiled and nod. "Yeah. I don't want him to be scared not knowing where he is. You go on ahead."

"Thank you, Misao." Kaoru flashed her a smile, then walked towards the kitchen inside the dojo.

The young woman sighed and looked back at the man laying there quietly. "It must've been horrible..." She whispered. "But don't worry...I'll be here when you awake."

One hour later

Misao had fallen asleep beside the man's side, the sound of falling rain being heard outside. Thunder was close behind it, the sound of it being heard in the distance.

"Oh man!" Sanosuke came running up to the porch for some shelter. "And I just had my jacket cleaned at Megumi's, damn it all!"

Yahiko was right behind him, patting himself dry as he sat down on the porch. "It sure was nice all day until this happened. The weather changes rather quickly."

Kaoru came out of the dojo with a smile and a tray of food. "Oh, hey you two."

Sanosuke turned and grinned as he saw the food. "Is that for me!?" He reached his hands forward, Kaoru suddenly counteracting with a light slap to the cheek.

"Whoa there, mister! This is for my patient."

The man blinked as he looked at her. "Huh...? What patient?"

"Well...I guess you should come see for yourself." Kaoru led them to the room and walked in, looking to see Misao was resting beside the man.

As Sanosuke and Yahiko walked in, their eyes widened when they noticed who was laying there. "Kenshin?!"

Misao suddenly sat up and looked around. "Where?!"

Kaoru sighed and walked into the room. "Nevermind. Sanosuke and Yahiko are just startled to see the resemblance in this man."

"Resemblance?! You mean that's not Kenshin?!" Yahiko asked with a confused look.

"It isn't." Kaoru set the food down and looked at them. "Notice that he has no scar and ponytail...and that he looks 10 or so years younger."

"Well, what do you know..." Sanosuke walked closer. "And it seems the weasel girl has taken a liking to him."

Misao blinked at his words and looked down to see she was holding his hand. "Uh..." She blushed and slowly pulled it away.

"How long ago did you find him?" Sanosuke asked.

"I would have to say a little over an hour..." Misao looked at him. "I was walking home with Kaoru's carrots when I..." She gasped. "Oh man, I forgot the carrots on the ground!"

Kaoru smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry about it. I can get some tomorrow and make what I had planned tomorrow."

"You mean I came all the way out here for nothing?!" Sanosuke sighed.

"And what does that mean?" Kaoru gave him a glare, but it wasn't serious. "You just LOVE to mooch off others, don't you?"

"Well..." He looked around innocently. "Let's just say...that your cooking has improved..."

"Really?!" She exclaimed. "That's so nice of you, Sanosuke!"

"Heh...yeah, right. The thing you made last week was pretty aw..." Sanosuke suddenly bashed Yahiko on the back of the head, sending him down to the ground.

"...awesome, was what he was going to say." Sanosuke started stepping on his back. "Right, brat?!"

"Yeah, sure..." Yahiko grunted.

"That's really nice of you to say." Kaoru giggled.

At that moment, the man laying on the futon winced and started to wake up. Everyone's gaze turned to him, wondering who he really was.

Misao watched carefully, not wanting him to strain himself.

"Uh..." The man's eyes slowly opened, staring up at the ceiling for a few moments before Misao spoke up.

"Hey...are you alright?" She asked quietly.

The man very slowly turned his head to see who spoke, noticing the others with her. His mouth moved slightly, but no words came out.

"Don't tell me you can't talk..." Kaoru gasped, her mouth going to her mouth in shock.

He slowly shook his head and tried to speak again. "Wa...water..."

"Sure." Misao took the cup beside her and looked at him. "This is a healing tea. It'll work better than water."

"That's good then..." He whispered, trying to sit up so he could take a sip.

Misao set the cup down and helped him, making sure his wounds didn't open again. "Be careful now..."

As he was helped up, he looked to see that the girl was holding his hand to support him. "Her hand..." He said to himself. "It feels so..."

"There we go." She smiled and grabbed the cup, holding it up to his lips. "Take a drink. It'll make you feel better."

"Thank you..." He sipped it gently and sighed.

"Even his voice sounds similar to Kenshin's..." Sanosuke bent down near Kaoru as he whispered in her ear. "This is strange indeed."

"I know..." She looked at him for a few moments before speaking. "Do...you know what happened to you? You were hurt pretty badly when Misao brought you back."

He looked at her, his eyes showing confusion. "What happened to me...?" His head lowered slightly. "Pain...that's all I remember..."

"I would assume he was attacked by yakuza." Yahiko said. "Either that or someone wanting him dead. That's all I can think of."

"Those are the only options I can think of also." Sanosuke stated. "Who knows if he's a criminal..."

"Come now, Sanosuke!" Kaoru looked at him. "Does he look the type?"

He kept his gaze down as he tried remembering back to the last moments before he fell unconcious. "Yes...yakuza attacked me. I was surrounded in the alleyway by all ways...then they..."

Misao placed a hand on his shoulder. "No need to talk about it. Focus on healing now."

The man looked up at her. "Thank you..."

She smiled. "What's your name, by the way?"

"Name...?" He looked at everyone, then back to her. "It's Tim."

"Tim...?" Kaoru blinked at the mention of it. "Sounds strange. Are you japanese?"

The young man shook his head. "I'm not, no..." He was about to continue till someone came running up through the rain.

"Oh, Kenshin." Kaoru looked at him as he walked inside. "Welcome back."

"Thank you." He said kindly, then went wide-eyed at the man sitting on the futon. "Oro?!"

Tim couldn't help but giggle when he did that. "Good ol' Kenshin..." He whispered in his mind.

"Oh yeah...this is Tim." Yahiko said to Kenshin. "Misao found him in town not to long ago."

"I see..." Kenshin looked at him for a few moments, a curious look in his eyes. "How strange..." He said to himself. "This aura that I'm getting from him..."

"Hmm?" Kaoru looked at him. "Something wrong, Kenshin?"

Snapping out of it, he looked down at her and shook his head. "No, it's nothing."

Someone else came walking up into the dojo. This time, it was Megumi. "Hello, everyone."

Everyone acknowledged her, then told her about Tim before she said anything.

"I see..." She looked at him. "Tim, is it?"

"Ye...yeah." He nod his head.

She smiled at him as she saw a certain look in his eyes. "We're glad to have you here. Don't hesitate to ask me for anything, for I am the town doctor here in Tokyo. I'll look at your wounds more closely later."

"Thank you..." He smiled, then looked at Misao. "Could I have more of that tea...?"

"Of course!" She said and picked the cup, holding it to his mouth.

Tim took it from her hands and sipped it, feeling the warmth of the liquid through the cup. "That feels good..."

Everyone smiled and felt glad to have helped a person in need of assistance.

--

An hour had gone by and the storm passed. Fireflies occupied the area outside, the coolness of the air attracting them. The young man Tim had fallen asleep again, Misao right outside his room so he could have some time alone. "How strange to be so similiar to Himura...and he isn't a relative." She said to herself as she looked up at the moon. "And yet...I feel a connection with him."

Someone walked out of the dojo and was heading for his room, a box in her hands. "Misao...is he asleep?"

The young ninja girl looked up to see Megumi standing there. "Yeah..."

"Okay. I can come back later..." As she turned to leave, Misao looked back into the room and saw him sitting up.

"Oh, wait...he's awake now." Misao stood and walked in, then kneeled beside his yukata. "Can't sleep...?"

Tim looked up at her. "No...my wounds hurt still." Then he noticed Megumi walking in.

"I'll help you out then." She smiled and kneeled on his other side, set the box down and got bandages, cotton balls, and rubbing medicine out. She gently took the top part of his yukata off and started rubbing the wounds with the medicine. Upon getting to the bandage to place upon the sword wound on his back, she stopped for a moment and thought in her mind, "Why does this seem so familiar...? It's just like...that time in Kyoto with Sir Ken..."

"Megumi...what's wrong?" Misao asked with concern in her voice.

"Oh...!" She looked at her. "Sorry...just a little tired, is all." She finished up with the other remaining wounds and smiled. "There we go. You should be good within a few days."

"I appreciate this..." Tim looked at her. "Thank you."

"No need to apoligize, Sir Tim. I'm a doctor...so it's my obligation to help the weak and suffering."

"Yeah...sounds wonderful." He said as he looked at her, then Misao who was smiling. "What is it...?"

She giggled. "Nothing."

Just then, a loud boom could be heard outside. Upon looking, Kaoru gasped at who it was behind the smoke of a bomb that had gone off. "Kenshin...come quick!"

He ran up to her side, his sword on his belt. "Wait...is that...?"

Misao and Megumi ran out of the room, fear in their eyes as to what was going on.

Sanosuke and Yahiko came out of the dojo as well, their eyes glaring at who it was.

"Hehhehheh..." The figure stepped forward at his large stature, an evil grin on his face. "It's been a while. How's it going, battousai?"

"Gohei..." Kenshin glared. "What are you doing here?!"

Tim struggled to stand so he could see what was going on, then walked up behind Misao and used her for support.

"What are you doing?" Misao asked worringly. "You shouldn't be standing."

Upon hearing her voice, Gohei turned his glance towards her and laughed. "Found ya!"

Misao turned to him and got her kunais at the ready. "What?! You've been looking for me!?"

"No...but the one behind you is."

Everyone gasped when they heard him and turned towards Tim.

"You...you want Tim?!" Misao gasped as he looked at the young man behind him. "Tim...do you know this man?"

Fear was in his eyes as he saw the intent in Gohei's eyes. "Why do you want me...?!"

"Don't deny it." He stepped towards the porch where they were standing. "You're a fighter, just like Himura. From what I heard...you're as good as him."

"Don't be ridiculous!" Sanosuke yelled. "Wherever the hell you got your information, it's all untrue!"

"Sano..." Kenshin raised a hand up in front of him, then looked at Gohei again. "Tell me why you pursue Sir Tim."

"Simple." Gohei glared at him. "Our leader plainly ordered us to get rid of him before anything get's in his way."

"Who's your leader? Answer me!" Kenshin got in a sword stance.

"Save your breath. I only came for him." He stepped towards the porch more.

"You're not going to have him!" Misao yelled, her body starting to shake, her kunai held between her fingers.

Megumi quickly got out of the way, not knowing what to do. "Misao, get out of there!"

Gohei laughed as he got closer, eyeing Tim behind the girl ninja. "Come down here and fight me."

"Fight...?" Tim's eyes widened. "But...I've never used a sword before!"

"HAH! Don't give me that crap! Our leader specifically said that you were close to the best, and I for one can see the swordsmanship in you! Either come down now or I'll kill your woman!"

He gasped and lowered his head, knowing he had to go. He didn't want Misao to die because of him. "Fine..." He walked past her and slowly stepped off the porch.

"Tim, no!" She yelled. "You're to weak! You'll die!!"

Tim turned to look at her. "Misao...sometimes running away doesn't solve anything. Besides..." He looked at everyone on the porch. "...people can do foolish things..." He looked back at her. "...when they want to protect someone."

"Tim..." Misao's eyes saddened.

"I thank you for what you've done for me, that I do..." He looked at Kenshin who had a shocking look in his eyes at what he just said...and a certain thing he sensed in the young man. "Kenshin...toss me your sakabato."

"Huh...?" Kenshin snapped out of it and took it off his belt. "Sir Tim...are you sure about this?"

He smiled and nod his head. "I refuse to let anyone close to me die..."

"I see the honor in his eyes...and the pain..." Kenshin said to himself as he clenched the sword in his hand. "Perhaps..." He sighed and tossed it up into the air towards him. "Catch!!"

Tim raised a hand out towards it and caught the sword, the weight becoming accustomed to his hand. "The sakabato...in my hand..." He whispered, then placed it on his belt, turning to face Gohei. "If you're ready...then we can begin."

"Excellent." They walked out away from everyone and stared each other down. Within Gohei's eyes was the intent to kill Tim...and within the eyes of the young man, was the will to fight. With no experience with a sword and his only power being the strength of his soul and his passion for others...would he survive this?


End file.
